Top Digital Advertising Channels for Bag Brands in Q4 2022

Key Takeaways

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Advertising Channel Scan™

Advertising Trends

• Focusing on a targeted omnichannel strategy, brands in the competitive set are moving away from Facebook, YouTube, Display and Twitter to focus on Paid Search, Instagram and TikTok. 
• Amongst the competitive set, average budget allocation saw increases in areas like Denver, Seattle and San Francisco in the United States. In Canada, Winnipeg was introduced into the budget in the second half of the period.  

Content Trends

• The top two ads for all Paid Search campaigns across brands focused on; 1. Educating the viewer about the brand’s core competencies and 2. Highlighting a specific purpose (ie. getaway bag) with free shipping or a first time purchase discount.
• Facebook and Instagram saw commonalities in brands focusing on collaborations and product functionality. These aim to convey who their product is for and how it solves pain points in a customer’s life, ie. “bike and commute ready”. 

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The following companies were included in the competitive set for this analysis:

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From January 2021 to October 2022, the competitive set spent $22M on digital advertising. Topo Designs’ Paid Search spend has led to the volatile spikes in investment. 

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All brands in the competitive set saw increases in ad spend from the first half to the second half of the time period except for Herschel (-6%) and Timbuk2 (-94%). 

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All channels saw decreases in ad spend from the first half to the second half of the period except for Paid Search (+136%) and Instagram (+19%). TikTok and Twitter were experimented with for the first time in the second half of the period.

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Paid Search ($13.8M) saw the highest budget allocation across the competitive set, followed by Facebook ($4.1M) and Instagram ($2.6M). 

Display ($139K) and Twitter ($316) saw the lowest ad spend allocations from January 2021 to October 2022.

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From January 2021 to October 2022, the United States saw the highest budget allocation across the competitive set at $20M. 

Ad spend in Canada represented 10% of the budget at $2M. 

In the competitive set, Herschel had the highest share allocation toward Canada at 39%, budgeting $1.7M for the region.

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From January 2021 to October 2022, the competitive set spent the highest average budget toward New York (12%), Columbus (10%) and Los Angeles (9%) in the United States.

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Denver (+140%), Seattle (+100%) and San Francisco (+93%) saw the highest average budget growth across the competitive set from the first half of the period to the second.

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From January 2021 to October 2022, the competitive set spent the highest average budget toward Toronto (28%), Calgary (16%) and Montréal (15%) in Canada.

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All metros except London (-100%) and Edmonton (-55%) saw increases in ad spend into the second half of the period. Competitors introduced Winnipeg into the budget.

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From January 2021 to October 2022, Topo Designs had the largest budget amongst the competitive set at $11M.

Top digital advertising spends are focused on Paid Search ($9.7M), followed by Facebook ($1.1M).

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Topo Designs budgeted $6M toward Desktop Paid Search (64%) compared to $3.5M on Mobile Paid Search (36%).

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Paid Search Tactics

Topo Designs spent $9.7M on Paid Search from January 2021 to October 2022. August 2022 saw the highest ad spend of $1.7M*. The high CPC for each ad may indicate that Topo Designs was in a testing phase during this period.

Get to Know Topo Designs:

• The highest Paid Search ad in August 2022 featured a simple explanation of who Topo Designs is and what they offer.

Discount:

• The second highest ad spend features a call out to free exchanges and returns. The ad focuses on building options for customers if a product doesn’t work out for them.

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On Facebook, Topo Designs budgeted $926K toward Link Post ads (83%) followed by Video Post ads at $108K (10%) and Carousel Post ads ($78K).

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Facebook Tactics

Topo Designs spent $1.1M on Facebook from January 2021 to October 2022.

Summer Sale:

• Topo Designs’ top ad spend for the period came from a sale offering 70% off. Instead of using product photography, the brand focused on a bright and colourful graphic to grab viewer attention. The headline also gives a sale end date to create urgency. 

Built to Last:

• The second highest ad spend went to a functional ad focusing on the brand’s core product and mission “made for anywhere on your map” and “built to last”. 

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From January 2021 to October 2022, Baboon To The Moon spent $4.8M on digital advertising. 37% of their budget went towards Facebook ($1.8M), followed by Instagram at $1M (25%).

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On Facebook, Baboon To The Moon budgeted $1.7M toward Link Post ads (94%) followed by Video Post ads at $80K (4%) and Carousel Post ads ($37K). 

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Facebook Tactics

Baboon To The Moon spent $1.8M on Facebook from January 2021 to October 2022.

Limited Collaboration:

• The top ad featured a limited-run “incognito” collection in collaboration with a Berlin-based artist. The creative features three sizes of bags with the functionality of each (ie. “mini, personal item”). The description includes time-urgency copy such as “Once it’s gone, it’s gone forever!”

Product Functionality:

• The second ad features a specific product and highlights an example of all the things a buyer could fit in the bag by using a flat lay. 

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On Instagram, Baboon To The Moon budgeted $748K toward Story Post ads (63%) followed by Photo Post ads at $258K (22%). 

The formats with the lowest budget allocation are Video Post ads ($110K) and Link Post ads ($72K).  

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Instagram Tactics

Baboon To The Moon spent $1M on Instagram from January 2021 to October 2022.

User-Generated Content:

• The top ad features a simple user-generated image of a creator wearing a fanny-pack style product. The image is bright and eye-catching. Instead of a general description, a customer review is used with a star rating.

Product Update:

• The second ad features a product upgrade letting customers know that new colours are available. The description uses emojis to format the benefits of buying with Baboon To The Moon.

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From January 2021 to October 2022, Herschel spent $4.3M in digital advertising. 40% of their budget went towards Paid Search ($1.7M), followed by Facebook at $1.1M (26%).

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Herschel budgeted $1.1M toward Desktop Paid Search (67%) compared to $569K on Mobile Paid Search (33%).

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Paid Search Tactics

Herschel spent $1.7M on Paid Search from January 2021 to October 2022. August 2021* saw the highest ad spend of $126K. 

Product Names:

• In the top ad, Herschel uses a short ad copy to catch the attention of viewers by mentioning their classic products like the Little America Backpack. 

Time & Place:

• For the ad with the second highest budget, Herschel takes a themed approach by promoting a “weekender kit” for getaways or campus. Incentives such as 10% off first purchases and free shipping are mentioned as well.

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On Facebook, Herschel budgeted $1M toward Link Post ads (96%) followed by Video Post ads at $28K (2%) and Carousel Post ads ($21K). 

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Facebook Tactics

Herschel spent $1.1M on Facebook from January 2021 to October 2022.

Star Wars Licensing:

• Herschel’s top ads on Facebook feature creatives about Star Wars product collaborations. Both ads use the same copy and feature two different products in the line. 

Licensing Best Practices:

✔️Shoot product in an environment that matches the collaboration 

✔️Use bright contrasting colours to display logos as main focal point 

✔️Focus first on brand-awareness over product-awareness, ensure viewers see eye-catching brand names first

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From January 2021 to October 2022, Timbuk2 spent $1.9M in digital advertising. 90% of their budget went towards Paid Search ($1.7M), followed by Facebook at $99K (5%).

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Timbuk2 budgeted $1M toward Desktop Paid Search (63%) compared to $621K on Mobile Paid Search (37%).

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Paid Search Tactics

Timbuk2 spent $1.7M on Paid Search from January 2021 to October 2022. February 2021 saw the highest ad spend of $639K. 

Short & Sweet:

• Timbuk2’s top ad spend focused on a short ad copy that promotes a 50% sitewide sale. The copy entices the reader by claiming the bag they’ve been “lusting” for is on sale. 

Get to Know Timbuk2:

• Timbuk2’s second highest spend features an elaborate description that highlights benefits such as “free shipping over $50” with an emphasis on durability and purpose such as “Types: Bags for Work, Travel”.

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On Facebook, Timbuk2 budgeted $46K toward Video Post ads (46%) followed by Link Post ads at $29K (29%). 

Status Post ads ($17K) and Carousel Post ads ($6.8K) saw the lowest budget allocation. 

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Facebook Tactics

Timbuk2 spent $99K on Facebook from January 2021 to October 2022.

Sale Time:

• Timbuk2’s top ad features a 60% off sale accompanied by a GIF ad format that flips through images related to the sale. Ad copy promotes both the sale and lifetime warranty.

Made For:

• Timbuk2’s second top Facebook ad features content geared around the concept of who their product is made for. A product tag feature was used to highlight an upgrade to the “Spire” bag that is suited even more for biker and commuters.

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*Ad spend includes Facebook, Display, Search, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, Twitter

*Spend is a directional approximation and does not include retargeting, or behavioural targeting.

*Digital Ad Spend in US & Canada (USD)